The Assassin & Kuja
by Yeshua
Summary: It's finally finished!
1. The Beginning

The Assassin & Kuja 

_Disclaimer: DEAR GOD NO!! DON'T SUE ME SQUARESOFT! AHH!! *Horrible cracking sounds*_

_Author's Note: Hi! I'm back from my long period of brief unrest with more tales of Kuja. Please do enjoy, or I'll murder you all. J/k.  Please review, even if it is just flames. Not too harsh, please. I am sensitive, ya know. Anyways, on with the story!_

_Chapter 1-The beginning_

_Somewhere in Gaia_

_1:31 A.M. Gaian Standard_

_Normal (Third person) P.O.V:_

_          There was a slight gleam of metal in the shadows of a Lindblum ally that night. However, no one failed to notice as they retired to their happy homes, satisfied with the work they contributed to the rebuilding of the Theater District. There, in the shadows, lurked one of the greatest assassins of all time. No one truly knew her real name, but her codename was Raamalooke. It meant Winged Dragon and it suited her well. Too well. She attacked her targets with unbelievable force and speed, that her targets barely had time to defend themselves._

_          She was rich also, for various secret guilds hired her to take out whomever they wished in Gaia. The guilds were wise in not holding the assassin in one spot. The woman didn't care for all the 'fraction fighting' that went on. She had her own moral code. For those who saw Raamalooke during the day, she looked just like any old Genome except that she kept herself hidden and out of the way. After all, she was the most wanted criminal in Gaia. During the night, was her time. She held and hid nothing back during her 'job'. So she stood there, watching and waiting for something. A short man walked in front of the opening of the ally and stopped, apparently looking for someone. From the shadows Raamalooke emerged, with one of her long tipped scimitars in hand._

_          "I-I bring news," The man stammered. Raamalooke laughed lightly._

_          "Good or bad things? Or maybe, perhaps, another target for me to exterminate?" She asked. The man nodded frantically. The scimitars were making him nervous._

_          "The boss has a perfect job for you. It is your job to assassinate King Zidane's brother, Kuja Tribal," The man answered. Raamalooke sheathed her scimitar thoughtfully._

_          "Why him? What did he do to Giovanni?" The man shrugged._

_          "I don't know. But the boss had this really angry look on his face." This was a big job. And she really loved these kind of jobs. However, it wasn't as easy as people thought. Kuja was still a sorcerer, and he had the protection of his brother's family._

_          "Hmm…Kuja won't know what will hit him tomorrow night. And the extent of Zidane's family shall feel it as well," She hissed. The man whispered and walked away as Raamalooke sat down to prepare for the trip to Alexandria._

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I watched the assassin with pure distaste. Raamalooke was going to assassinate Kuja, my old friend. I couldn't let that happen. I stepped away from the edge of the rooftop that I was on and wrapped my cloak about me. It'd take time to get to Alexandria by way of a dragon. Raamalooke wouldn't walk there, either. Oh no…she'd take the Airship. I clicked my tongue lightly and hopped into the air. A light flap of dragon wings made me look up. A claw grabbed me, making it easier to climb up on my dragon's foot._


	2. First Strike

Chapter 2-First Strike 

_Alexandria_

_9:15 P.M. Gaian Standard_

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          I got out of the Airship and stole away into the shadows. Kuja would be taking his normal walk through Alexandria tonight and I'd be ready to take his life. One way or another._

_Kuja's Point of View:_

_          I could tell that something was wrong. The night felt ominous and the entire city was still, as if something dark was in town. That was not likely unless the city-folk counted me as evil. I had been around enough that almost everyone trusted the fact that I wouldn't 'snap' anytime soon. I sighed and continued my leisurely scroll down the street to the entrance. The moon was full, and it bathed the city in a blue glow that I found rather comforting. Just as I reached the entrance, I heard the sound of a sword being unsheathed. I whipped around and frantically scanned the street._

_          Nothing there. Maybe I'm just hearing things. Shaking my head somewhat, I started back to the castle._

_          "Hmm…why are you hiding, Kuja?" A feminine voice asked. That was enough to stop me in my tracks._

_          "Perhaps, you should ask yourself that question," I hissed. Just then, a woman stepped out of the shadows. A cloak half hid her body, but no the scabbards. There was a hint of a tail poking out from under the cloak as well. The woman had raven colored hair and silver eyes. She was nothing that I've ever seen before._

_          "I have been ordered to dispose of you, permanently," The woman said. Permanently? That sounded nice, but I did have my children to attend to. Plus, I had the rest of my life to live._

_          "That does sound nice, but I'm afraid I can't let you do that," I muttered. As I said those words, power flowed to my fingertips. The woman sighed and unsheathed two very long swords. This worried me a little bit, but that fear began to fade after a while. I grinned and released a Flare spell on her without remorse. She stepped through the flames with a smile that said, 'Your death will be sweet.' I began to feel weaker as usual when I used my magic. It was an age thing, I guess. There was a sharp dragon cry, and all of a sudden, another woman dropped out of the sky. The woman unsheathed her two swords and swung them downward._

_          "How dare you, Raamalooke!" The woman shouted. Raamalooke? The master assassin? Why do I always attract people who want to kill me? The woman called Raamalooke stepped back with her swords held high. The other woman looked familiar to me…_

_          "You are forever getting into things, Kuja. When are you going to settle down?" The other woman asked as she landed and forced Raamalooke to back up some more. That had to be Mitheithel. She is the only person that would tease me when I'm in danger. Plus, I'd hate to have her as an enemy. As gentle as Mitheithel seemed, she was extremely dangerous when her temper flared._

_          "Mitheithel, you are seriously behind. I have already settled down. Since when do you ever stray away from your village?" I asked sarcastically. Mitheithel snorted as Raamalooke fled from the scene._

_          "Since a few months ago," She answered. It was good to see her again, but the fact that she was entirely unpredictable right now bothered me. I preferred to be in control of the situation. Mitheithel sheathed her swords and rubbed her side._

_          "Raamalooke gave me a nasty nick with her sword and I'm still a bit winded from the fall off of my dragon earlier," She muttered._

_          "Perhaps, you should come back to the castle with me," I suggested._

_          "I'd rather not," Mitheithel said._

_          "You need to rest, do you not?" Stop being stubborn," I said. Mitheithel burst out laughing._

_          "Stubborn? None is as stubborn as you, monkey boy," She joked. I glared at her darkly. I hate being called that._

_          "Alright, alright, I'll go with you back to the castle," She finally agreed._

_Alexandria Castle:_

_          As soon as we stepped foot in the castle, guards swarmed us. Steiner walked won the stairs with a frown._

_          "Master Zidane, and Mistress Garnet were worried about you," He muttered. Zidane was always worried about me these days._

_          "I was delayed," I said calmly as Mitheithel shifted her weight to her right leg. Steiner eyed her with contempt._

_          "Is there something wrong?" She asked._

_          "I don't remember seeing you," Steiner said._

_          "Of course not," Mitheithel snapped. Steiner waved his hand and the guards closest to her drew their swords. She just laughed._

_          "Attack me then, Steiner. Come on, I dare you," She taunted. I bit my lip in order to keep from laughing. Steiner's face turned red from her statement. But before Steiner could try it, Zidane appeared on the stairs._

_          "Glad to see that no one killed you," He commented. I chuckled._

_          "Not that they would anyway," I muttered. Zidane looked at Mitheithel and grinned. I could read 'flirt' all over his face. This was going to be interesting._

_          "I haven't seen you around. You have such pretty eyes," He said._

_          "Nice try, but unless you want a taste of my claws and my swords, go right ahead," Mitheithel replied. Zidane blinked and grinned again._

_          "Ah, maybe Kuja's got another girl?" Now it was my time to scowl._

_          "No one can replace my wife. No one," I snapped. That was a very sensitive issue for me. It was hard raising my twin daughters alone. Kalya and Kulusindi hardly knew their mother before she died. Mitheithel cleared her throat softly._

_          "Why don't we have a cup of Chocobo Green Tea by the fire? It would give me sometime to rest," She suggested._

_          "That would be splendid," Garnet said from the head of the stairs._

_Down by the fireplace:_

_          As usual, I sat in the corner closest to the fireplace, watching and waiting. Mitheithel had her cloak about her boy as she calmly sipped the tea._

_          "So where do you come from, Mitheithel?" Garnet softly asked._

_          "I come from a remote village in Gaia. It's uncharted, so only the inhabitants know where it's located," Mitheithel replied._

_          "Why did you come here? I mean, I thought you never wanted to leave your village," I asked. She sat her cup on her lap and sighed._

_          "After Kuja left, there wasn't much of anything to do. He told me of the places in Gaia, and I just wanted to see the world," She explained. I remembered that._

_          "I remember those days, Mitheithel. And I remember the whipping I got from you as well," I muttered. She chuckled lightly._

_          "You made me do it, Kuja. You attacked me first, and what I did was purely self-defense." Sure, it was self-defense. It took a series of seriously painful spells to put me down. Plus, I was bedridden for three weeks after that._

_          "But I did apologize for it," Mitheithel said thoughtfully._

_          "One thing that bothers me is the fact that you came to save me. Why?" I asked._

_          "I have been following Raamalooke for a long time and when I heard that she was going to kill you, I just came," I replied. There was another reason why she came. But she wasn't going to admit it. She was way too stubborn to admit that kind of thing. Mitheithel sipped from her glass and closed her eyes._

_          "I am going to retire now, I'll see you in the morning," Garnet said. She got up and headed upstairs. Zidane followed her reluctantly. I guess he was still curious about Mitheithel. I started to say something to her, but her head was tilted to the side, and not a sound could be heard from her. I shook my head and went upstairs as well._

_Morning; Gaian Standard_

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          The morning dawned bright and warm as I stood on a nearby balcony. It was rather soothing and it helped refresh my mind before my morning exercises. The castle was silent as it's inhabits continued on sleeping. I jumped down from the balcony to the lower courtyard. That way I could be in peace for a while. I dropped my cloak and removed my scimitar scabbards from my belt. I was clothed in a sleeveless silver shirt and black pants. I took a deep breath, sat on the ground, and relaxed. I forced all thoughts from my mind._

_Kuja's Point of View:_

_          I took one look out of my window and smiled. Yet another beautiful day. I sighed, and slipped on another fancy outfit (I still had my codpiece, somewhere) and walked across the hall to wake up my twin daughters, Kalya and Kulusindi. But when I opened the door, they were already awake. They were both 7 years old, and they inherited my stubbornness and their mother's calmness. Kalya had stunning green eyes just like her mother, and Kulusindi had blue eyes like me. That was the only way you could tell them apart._

_          "Good morning, Father," They said in unison. I smiled warmly. Once again, I had something to live for. I walked up to the window to look out at the city again when I saw Mitheithel swinging her swords in the air. Her movements were perfectly timed and very fast. It was absolutely beautiful to watch. Kalya walked up to the window and smiled._

_          "Mitheithel is here," She said. I nodded slowly, transfixed by Mitheithel's complicated movements. She performed two flips and brought her scimitars in front of her again. And then she stood there for a while, sweating lightly. I turned away from the window and went downstairs._

_A/N: Not bad, eh? Please Review! And Chapter 3 will be up in a matter of days._


	3. Second Chance

Chapter 3-Second Chance 

_12:41 P.M. Gaian Standard_

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I stood in the courtyard for a long time after I finished warming up. The peacefulness of the place drew and kept me there. For a long time, I began to forget the reason why I was here._

_          "Mitheithel," Someone called. I snapped out of my daze and looked around. It was Garnet._

_          "Yes?" I asked softly. I slipped my scimitars back into their scabbards and stood up._

_          "Are you sure you don't want anything to eat? You were out here all morning," She said. I didn't feel hungry. I did things during the night. That was my time as well._

_          "No thank you, Garnet," I replied lightly._

_          "It's peaceful here, isn't it?" Garnet asked. Indeed it was._

_          "I never knew Alexandria was so peaceful. Heh, I'm so used to turmoil of my village," I trailed off. Garnet looked at me carefully._

_          "I hope you get to stay here longer then," She said. Something made my ears stand on end. A light rustling of bushes and the scrape of a sword along the ground meant only one thing: Raamalooke. She was trying a daytime assassination. But that would attract my attention. It seemed a little off to me. I stood up and rested my hands on top of the hilts of my scimitars as I walked around the courtyard. The noises seemed to be closer than before._

_          "You continue to watch over him, don't you, Mitheithel?" Raamalooke asked. I wasn't sure where she was. Her voice rebounded off of some nearby object._

_          "I'm not going to be let him be killed by you, Raamalooke," I snapped._

_          "Oh, I have a new target now," She said slyly. I could guess who that was. I circled around the courtyard slowly, ready for anything. Raamalooke phased out from the shadows, and pounced on me. I kicked her off and got back up. Magic and energy flocked to my call. I stepped back and let my intended spell fly. Lightning crashed down on her, making her fly back in the opposite direction. In one movement, I unsheathed my swords and walked over to her. Two swords came to greet me. Raamalooke spun around and sent one of her swords toward my side. I brought one of my swords to block it with speed._

_          I delicately started at her again with a bunch of difficult combinations. Raamalooke's feet shuffled back and forth as she struggled to keep pace. I was faster than her when I used my swords, just she still ruled me at magic. I broke away from my pressing combinations and stabbed at her flank with both swords. Raamalooke barely acknowledged the pain I caused her as she kicked me in the chest. I stumbled back with my swords in hand. Raamalooke had dropped hers as a result of my stab._

_          She pounced again, knocking me onto the ground. My swords were scattered across the courtyard, way beyond my reach. I grabbed her face with one hand, trying to embed my claws into her face. It worked and Raamalooke let out a horrible shriek. She got up and kicked me in the side, forcefully. I wrapped my tail around her legs and swung my legs towards her lower leg. Her knees buckled and she fell down with a groan. So far, I had only minor injuries: cuts and bruises on my arm and a slight ache in my side._

_          Raamalooke latched her claws onto my right arm and pulled. I heard flesh rip and bit my lip to keep from screaming. Then, without warning, the entire Alexandrian army surrounded us. Raamalooke let go of my arm and looked around. This was a uniquely dangerous situation. I grabbed my bleeding arm as I sat up and curled my tail around me. I felt numb and weak. Were Raamalooke's claws laced with something? Steiner walked through the line and scowled at the both of us, or rather, more at Raamalooke._

_          "And just what were you two doing?" He asked. His voice was laced with suspicion._

_          "She attacked me," Raamalooke lied. A deep growl welled up in my throat._

_          "Surely, you jest, dear woman. Mitheithel is in favor of the queen. And the queen does not favor those who are murderers," Steiner said. Despite my hurt, I grinned, as Raamalooke turned pale. The assassin reached into a pouch and threw something down. Smoke filled the courtyard, sending it into chaos. I remained where I was calmly and waited for it to clear. When it did, Raamalooke was gone._

_          "Search the castle grounds! Don't let her get away!" Steiner ordered. I stood up carefully and picked up my swords, then sheathed them one by one. I cradled my torn arm to my chest, not really caring about the pain. It was numb anyway. Kuja and Garnet arrived on the scene and sighed._

_          "Mitheithel, are you alright?" Garnet asked._

_          "I-I'm fine," I stammered. My voice sounded weird. Raamalooke's claws were tainted with poison. Otherwise, I wouldn't feel like this. Forget my code about people touching me. I needed help or I would die. Luckily enough, Kuja ignored my haggard sounding voice and inspected my arm just as my legs gave out. Kuja reached out and grabbed me before I could hit the ground. Fortunate for him, I didn't touch him with my hands. There were hidden powers that I didn't want Kuja to find out about._

_          But I was semi-conscious and my eyes darted back and forth lazily as everyone gathered about. Everything seemed to be going in slow motion. I couldn't make myself talk or anything. I just felt numb. It was then that I knew that I wouldn't live long. The poison was spreading fast and soon it would go to my heart. And then something happened._

_          Kuja's hand touched mine. I saw things. I saw a woman that looked very familiar to me and she was holding two babies, Kalya and Kulusindi, no doubt. I saw a blue world and then, a flash of light. I wasn't sure what I was looking at. It was something Kuja didn't tell me. I saw him floating over something with his eyes purely red. I could feel his emotions: despair, and anger. I found that no matter how hard I tried to get away from the vision, it failed. I was trapped in Kuja's mind. And I was dying…_

_A/N: Pretty good, huh? Please review! PLEASE O_O; Coming up: Strange things (Ch.4)_


	4. Strange things

Chapter 4-Strange Things 

_A few days later_

_Alexandria Castle_

_4:57 A.M. Gaian Standard_

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I woke up with a start. The room was dark except for a small lamp on the table across the room. I had no idea where I was. My arm had some feeling in it now. It was carefully wrapped with bandages. My body didn't feel numb, either. I was alive. But those horrific images that haunted me even after I lost consciousness bothered me. I saw Kuja sitting in a chair. He was looking at the window so intently, that he didn't notice me wake up. I think he knew about my gift. (A/N: Ever seen the Dead Zone?) After a few minutes, he looked at me._

_          "Ah, your awake," He said._

_          "How long have I been asleep," I asked._

_          "Five days," Kuja answered. I shook my head. Five whole days…_

_          "What happened to me?" I asked._

_          "We found out that Raamalooke had poisoned you at the last minute, but Garnet managed to treat you. By then, you weren't responding to anything. We feared you dead," He explained. I thought I was dead. Yet, another question hit my mind._

_          "What kind of poison was it?" Kuja closed his eyes for a second and nodded._

_          "It was designed to weaken people's muscles," He replied calmly._

_          "That's why I felt numb. Now, how am I supposed to get back on my feet again?" I muttered._

_          "No rush. It'll be a few more days before that arm will heal anyway." A few…days? That's not possible. It wasn't fair! I couldn't afford to say down this long. I started to get out of my bed and nearly swooned in the process. Kuja got up and helped me out of bed carefully. I clung to him tightly, my balance not exactly perfect. It was then that I noticed my claws were short._

_          "You trimmed my claws," I muttered. Kuja shrugged._

_          "You kept scratching us and we were afraid to bond your hands, so we trimmed them," He said. Oh well, they would grow back. Kuja carefully pealed my hands off of his arms and handed me some clothes. I took them and blinked as Kuja exited the room. I put the clothes on slowly, to avoid moving my left arm. It seemed that Garnet really did like me. She gave me a shirt with sleeves almost down to my wrists and stylish black pants. It hid the bandages on my arm slightly. And it made me feel much better._

_          I sat there for a moment, thinking. That's when I noticed that my hair had been wrapped up in a neat bun. I must have been pampered while I was asleep. Just then, there was a knock on the door._

_          "Come in," I said. Kuja poked his head in the doorway._

_          "There is something you might want to check out," He said grimly. I walked towards the door, having regained my balance, and stepped out into the hallway. Kuja slipped a cloak on my shoulders and led me outside. It was slightly chilly, which was strange since it was in the middle of summer. Kuja seemed to pay it no heed. At last we arrived in the square. It was filled with people. As we came near, the people stepped to the site letting us both in. What I saw next unnerved me. There was a dead man on the ground, broken and bloodied, with some kind of symbol on his forehead. I knew immediately that it was a sign of evil. Raamalooke's sign, only tainted. Kuja looked at me solemnly._

_          "What do you think?" He asked._

_          "That sign is evil," I replied. Zidane looked at me._

_          "Great, now there's evil afoot in the city," He muttered. I didn't want to tell him how nasty this could get. If in fact, we found out that it wasn't Raamalooke, we could have a serious demon on our hands. I could feel a dark presence in that sign, coursing with something unknown. Maybe I could reveal something about this…_

_          "Stand back," I ordered. Kuja, Zidane and the city-folk obeyed immediately. I extended my right arm, focusing on the sign. My hand began to glow blue as I started walking towards the body. An unknown force resisted mine, turning the color of the energy at my fingertips red. All of a sudden, a dark force snuffed out my energy and forced me back into Kuja. That sign was unidentifiable to my charms._

_          "Raamalooke's good. Really good. I can't bring anything else to light," I said._

_7:02 P.M. Gaian Standard_

_Alexandria Castle_

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          Despite what happened with me and the sign, Alexandria slowly returned to normal. I sat in the commons room, letting Kalya and Kulusindi in my hair a little bit. They were rather quiet children. I supposed they like having me around as someone to come to other than Kuja. I wish I knew what happened to his wife. Maybe I could have prevented her death. Maybe I could have prevented thousands of things myself._

_          Now Raamalooke was after the Royal Family. Zidane and Garnet wouldn't be in danger; they had the army. It was just Kuja, and me that was vulnerable. And with my arm still in the healing process, I couldn't use my swords. It seemed like I was waiting to die._

_          "Mitheithel, what are you thinking about?" Kalya asked softly._

_          It's something you wouldn't understand," I said. Kulusindi laughed._

_          "We don't understand our father sometimes. I think we can handle it though," She remarked._

_          "Strange things are going on Alexandria," I said._

_          "Father is really worked up about that," Kayla commented. Why wouldn't be? Raamalooke was after him. Someone had to have a run in with Kuja in order for the assassin to have a reason to kill him. A loud scream rattled the windows outside, sending poor Kalya and Kulusindi into a panic. I stood up and walked to the window, slowly. I didn't see anything weird or gory. Perhaps it was a false alarm. Yeah…maybe. There were small puffs of red light coming from the city. I needed to take a closer look. But Kuja and the others were out of the castle. And I couldn't leave the twins alone._

_          "Kalya, Kulusindi, come with me," I commanded. The twins did as I said, staying rather close to my legs. I opened the door and stepped out into the hallway. It was quiet and deserted. Not unusual, but nevertheless, the twins were afraid. Our footfalls echoed off of the walls as we continued on. After a few minutes, we reached the commons room. By the time we reached the windows, whatever caused the red puffs was gone._

_          "Well, that's strange. Let's head back upstairs," I breathed. But when I turned around, a horrible roar filled the air. The windows shattered, forcing me to put Kalya and Kulusindi in front of me. Shards of glass rained down on our heads. The girls screamed. A cold and mighty wind rushed in, blowing various objects around. I uttered the only spell I could think of: Dispel. The winds died down instantly, leaving a mess of debris in its wake. Kalya and Kulusindi clung to my leg, crying loudly. The whole affair had scared them, not to mention me._

_          "It's alright," I said soothingly, "nothing is going to hurt you. Not while I'm around." Once I got the two calmed down, I set about surveying the damage. Glass and furniture were everywhere._

_          "What happened here?" Someone asked. I turned around and saw Kuja, Garnet, Zidane, and Steiner standing near the doorway. I walked right up to Kuja and slapped him._

_          "Where were you?" I asked angrily. He looked at me with surprise._

_          "We were out in the square again," He answered carefully._

_          "Kuja, we could have been attacked," I snapped._

_          "You had your magic, Mitheithel," He said calmly._

_          "What if I couldn't protect Kalya or Kulusindi? What would you do? Call on your wife?" Kuja's eyes narrowed. I had struck a nerve. Garnet and Zidane, seeing the deadly silence between us as unstable, took the twins out of the room._

_          "Don't talk about my wife," Kuja snarled._

_          "Face facts, Kuja! She's gone! Dead! Don't endanger your daughters because of your foolishness!" I screamed. Kuja's eyes narrowed further. I could feel the rage building in him. Then without warning, he swung at me with his fist. There was no way I could grab that with my right hand. Ignoring the pain in my left, I reached up and grabbed it. I slapped him again in response to his attempt. He returned the slap quickly and I felt myself falling back. I caught myself before I hit the ground and called one of my scimitars psychically. Before he could get another shot in, my scimitar appeared in my hand and I quickly pointed it at his chest._

_          "I don't understand you. Let go your past, Kuja," I said. When Kuja didn't reply, I continued._

_          "You don't need my help," I muttered as I headed toward the stairs._

_A/N: Ooh...what do you think? Good huh? R&R, if you think so!_


	5. Holy Necron!

_Chapter 5-Holy Necron!_

_Alexandria Castle_

_Afternoon; Gaian Standard_

_Kuja's Point of View:_

_          I had to admit that I missed Mitheithel's presence in the castle. But pride stopped me from apologizing to her. Kalya and Kulusindi responded to her loss with silence. They didn't bother to ask me about it. I knew what they were thinking. There were no more mysterious signs on dead people. It was as if it never happened. Word of the master assassin Raamalooke had faded as well. But something made me wonder still. What did Mitheithel had to do with this?_

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I didn't know where I was. It just happened suddenly. As I left Alexandria, I was abducted. By who? I didn't see. All of a sudden, there was a sack over my head and I was taken somewhere. I opened my eyes and saw that I was in a big room. It was fairly empty except for the rug I was sitting on. Plus, my arms and legs were bound with tight ropes. My left arm didn't hurt and when I took a closer look at it, it was healed. Who could have healed it? On closer inspection, I found that anything considered as a weapon on me was removed. How unlucky._

_          "Ah, now you are awake, dear Mitheithel," Someone said. It took me several minutes to registers the sound of that voice._

_          "Raamalooke," I said carefully._

_          "Glad to hear that you recognized me," She said calmly._

_          "Why am I here?" I asked._

_          "I brought you here. We are alike, you and I," Raamalooke mused. What was she getting on about?_

_          "You didn't answer my question," I reminded her sternly. There was a light sign and soon Raamalooke's eyes came within view._

_          "I brought you here to save you. Nasty things will happen in Alexandria tonight. Very nasty things," She explained._

_          "Do tell," I prompted gently._

_          "Giovanni and his pack of demons will ravage Alexandria. They told me to stay out of it, because I failed," Raamalooke said. Kuja and his daughters were going to die. I had to do something._

_          "Set me free, Raamalooke! I need to save Alexandria," I pleaded._

_          "No," Raamalooke hissed. And then she vanished. I pulled my arms up to where the ropes could be reached. I started to gnaw at them with vicious force. I will not let this happen. Innocent life cannot be destroyed like this. After a few minutes, I had chewed through the rope that bound my hands and undid the ropes that bound my feet. There was a door in the corner that seemed to glow. It was laced with magic. Probably to keep me in here. I wanted to find my scimitars. But I didn't know where to look. I tried opening the door, but it resisted me._

_          "Maybe if I cast dispel," I muttered to myself. I forced my thoughts and casted it on the door. The light flickered and faded. I opened it with ease and stepped out. There was another hallway that was dimly lit._

_          "What should I do with Mitheithel, Giovanni?" Raamalooke asked. As soon as I heard her voice, I froze. What could happen now? A lot._

_          "Dispose of her. Mitheithel is a thorn in my side that must be removed. Don't disappoint me," Giovanni hissed. I ducked into the shadows and carefully headed down the hall. I didn't need to be killed by someone was considered me as a torn in my side._

_          I softly clicked my tongue as I continued down the dark hall. I had to figure out where my scimitars were. I had runes that would help me recall them, just in case I lost them._

_          "Going somewhere?" I started running as fast as I could. Forget the swords. This was my life in danger! As soon as I ran out into the open, I no longer heard any footfalls. That might only one thing: ambush. Suddenly, Raamalooke jumped down from the branches, with one sword unsheathed and extended towards my head. I quickly ran to the side, just barely missing the sword._

_          "Why bother listening to Giovanni, Raamalooke? You're a free spirit. We can save the world," I said as I faced her. Raamalooke was thinner than I last saw her. Her hair flowed down the left side of her face, hiding her left eye. The tips of her ears clearly showed. She gave me a thoughtful look._

_          "Saving the world? Nah. Giovanni is a pain in the butt. For the demon that she is," Raamalooke muttered. I relaxed slowly. Demon? Just how much danger is Alexandria in tonight?_

_          "Why don't you help me?" I asked._

_          "No," She said firmly._

_          "Why not?"_

_          "My moral code forbids it," She said simply. Sure. Your moral code did not forbid you from helping me. Raamalooke, you liar. Raamalooke chuckled softly as if she knew what I was thinking._

_          "I let you go so you can save Alexandria. You do not need me," She said calmly._

_Alexandria_

_Kuja's Point of View:_

_          It all began with one feeling of foreboding to put Zidane and Garnet on edge. Kalya and Kulusindi were silent again, more than usual. My thoughts lingered on Mitheithel. Was she ok? Who knew? It wasn't long before the castle doors flew open by themselves. Everyone froze. Kalya and Kulusindi huddled in the corner behind me. A figure appeared at the door and stepped in. It was a woman with fiery red hair and green eyes. She had an eye patch over her left eye. She also had on a black top with one strap and black stretch pants on. In her hand, she had a rune-covered staff. I knew the woman almost immediately: Giovanni._

_          "You've got a lot of nerve," I said. She chuckled._

_          "Kuja, I believe you have something I want," She muttered._

_          "Go home, Giovanni, you are wasting your time," I snapped. Giovanni gripped her wand tightly._

_          "That's not the real reason why I'm here. Queen Garnet, surrender Alexandria to me," She hissed. Something was a bit wrong about this situation._

_          "No," Garnet said firmly. Giovanni's face darkened._

_          "I knew you were going to say that," She said. All of a sudden, the light in the room dimmed. Giovanni waved the staff around quickly. All of us, except for my daughters, flew against the wall and stayed there. Giovanni was right next to them, grinning widely._

_          "Lovely children you have here, Kuja. What a pity," She remarked. She turned to look at Garnet._

_          "Surrender the kingdom or I'll make someone's worst nightmare come true," She snapped. I struggled to get off of the wall. Giovanni laughed and motioned to me. I was single-handedly peeled off of the wall and forced to float in front of her. The urge to kill her was rising._

_          "You still miss her, don't you? Its too bad Raamalooke killed her," She sneered. I spat in her face. Giovanni brushed away the spit and frowned. I had a feeling this wouldn't be pleasant._

_          "Your death will be all the sweeter," She declared. Kulusindi and Kalya started to cry._

_          "Not if I can help it!" Someone shouted. A figure jumped down from the shadows and snapped Giovanni's staff in half with a sword. The rest of us dropped to the floor, instantly._

_          "Raamalooke should have killed you!" Giovanni growled. That had to be Mitheithel._

_          "It's against her code, Giovanni. I have done nothing to you, so she set me free," Mitheithel explained._

_          "No matter," Giovanni replied darkly. She turned and fired a spell right into Mitheithel's chest. It only took seconds for it to happen. A bright flash of light occurred and when it faded, Mitheithel was on the side of the room. Giovanni was still in the same spot. The room was silent. I couldn't believe what happened. Mitheithel was on the floor, motionless._

_          "Why did you do that?" Someone asked. Giovanni looked around and shrugged._

_          "What now?" She asked. She sounded a bit annoyed. A small child hopped down from the rafters and glared at her._

_          "Why did you hurt Mommy? That's a mean thing you did. Awful, awful, bad person," The child said. Giovanni growled and threw a fireball at the kid. The child blocked it with one hand and started towards Mitheithel. If this could get any stranger…_

_          "Sorry Mommy. I could have been down here earlier," She whispered. Then, the child made several symbols with her hands and pointed one finger in the air. Blue sparks floated above Mitheithel's stomach, making her body glow. The child put her finger down and cocked her head to the side. Mitheithel's body floated straight up and stood up as if she was alive. The wound where the spell hit closed up instantly. (Mitheithel's shield took most of the blow.) And then, her eyes opened. They were a startling silver hue and her black pupils stood out as well. The sparks faded, but a soft glow remained around Mitheithel._

_          "That was a close one, Telemna," She muttered. Telemna shook her head slowly._

_          "Sorry, Mother. I was delayed," She replied softly. Mitheithel turned to face us._

_          "That is not Giovanni! That is—" She started._

_          "Rather stupid to say, Mitheithel," Giovanni interrupted._

_          "What Mommy was trying to say is that's Necron!" Telemna shouted._

_          "You have no proof," Giovanni snapped._

_          "Oh, but she does," A silky voice mused. Mitheithel looked up and smiled._

_          "Ah, Raamalooke, nice to see you again," She greeted._

_          "You are caught like a rat in a trap, Necron. Or should I say Kyrenia, dark follower of Necron," Raamalooke pointed out. Kyrenia shrugged and snatched a small pouch from Garnet. She winked and disappeared._

_          "My Eidolons!" She cried out. There was a high-pitched roar outside._

_          "Telemna, is that you making that noise?" Mitheithel asked._

_          "No, Mommy," Telemna answered._

_          "We must leave Alexandria," Mitheithel said. There was a groundbreaking explosion. Kalya and Kulusindi whined and huddled close to me._

_          "Perhaps we should take Mitheithel's advice," Garnet said._

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          We were in the street minutes later in a single file line. I didn't see Raamalooke since the confrontation in the castle, but I was sure that she was nearby. Buildings were on fire, making safe passage difficult. Screams of death filled the air, haunting Zidane, Garnet and me. Kuja didn't seem to acknowledge the screams as we did. I think he felt helpless. Kyrenia would have killed him and stolen the essence from his daughters._

_          "Telemna, go ahead and see if there is any danger. Help any civilian you can find," I ordered. Telemna nodded and gave a cheerful 'Yes, Mommy' before going on ahead. A black shape high above the city spewed fire onto several other buildings. I urged the group on further, hoping that nothing bad would happen._

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          I followed Mitheithel and the others on for some distance before stopping. Kyrenia had summoned Bahamut and it was busy torching the entire city. The dragon king swooped down into view and flew over the city. I took my bow and quiver and took aim. Kyrenia was now looking for the group. I could tell by the eidolon's erratic way of flying. My banishing arrow will do the trick. Bahamut swooped over my location again and I quickly let my arrow fly. It hit, just barely, making Bahamut disappear. That would keep them safe until Giovanni thought of something else. That wouldn't be too long. I placed my bow and quiver back into their respective spots and continued after the group._

_Back to Mitheithel:_

_          The explosions stopped. At once, I felt a feeling of safety. But it was short lived. My ears picked up the distant hum of magic overhead. Telemna had Kalya and Kulusindi walking beside her in front of the group. They were the safest there, for Telemna was really dedicated to her work. If I told her to do it, she'd do it in fine fashion. We had just reached the entrance before I noticed something unusual._

_          "Mitheithel, watch yourself," Raamalooke yelled. I didn't know where she was but I heard her loud and clear. I wasn't sure what to expect. The ground ripped apart from under Kuja and me. Garnet, Zidane, Telemna, and the twins were forced back, unable to help them or us. I stumbled onto the ground, clawing at the pavement to stop myself form sliding into the hole._

_          Kuja was in a much better situation. He rushed over to me and started pulling me back up. As he did this, I saw Kyrenia standing on a nearby rooftop and in trance. She grinned and threw a fireball at Kuja. And I only had seconds to react._

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          A flash of light occurred and I began to fear for Kuja and Mitheithel. I hid away in the shadows that was left, and listened carefully. It was before long that I looked around the corner to see what happened. A figure surround in white light stood in front of Kuja. Whoever that was, she blocked a Firaga spell, head on. On closer inspection, I noticed that it was a woman that looked a lot like Mitheithel. In fact, it was. Kuja turned around and looked at her. Kyrenia blocked in surprise and left the scene._

_          "Mitheithel?" I heard Kuja ask. There was no answer from her. And then, she collapsed. No doubt, something mysterious was going on here._

_A/N: What will happen next?_


	6. Eidolon Challenge

A/N: All of the Eidolons have human forms, and because they are following Kyrenia's orders, they are now evil as well.

Chapter 6-Eidolon Challenge 

_Part 1-After the scare; Ramuh's Appearance_

_Some unknown meadow (A lot of miles away from Alexandria)_

_11:27 A.M. Gaian Standard_

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          We had traveled quite a bit after what happened in Alexandria. Kuja mostly had to carry Mitheithel on his back the entire way. She had been out cold for hours on end. Telemna showed no signs of tiring when we stopped in the meadow. Kalya and Kulusindi had grown to trust her. Garnet was still a little devastated over the loss of her gems. She would get them back. Even if I had to pry them from Kyrenia's cold, dead fingers. Kuja set Mitheithel down and faced me._

_          "Why did you come?" He asked._

_          "I came because of Mitheithel. She is rather stubborn," I replied._

_          "Stubborn with a heart of gold," Kuja muttered._

_          "There are some things I'd like to know. One is about Telemna," I explained._

_          "And another, is about you," I added. Kuja's eyes twinkled in the sunlight._

_          "Now Telemna, I don't know about. You'll have to ask Mitheithel on that subject," Kuja replied. But what about my second question, Kuja? Are you scared that I might find out the truth? I guess my eyes must have told Kuja how I felt at the moment, because he frowned and looked away._

_          "Why should I have to tell you anything? Shouldn't you already know?" He asked. I could sense irritation in his voice._

_          "Drop it, Kuja. Just forget I asked you that," I muttered. For one thing, I wasn't in the mood to fight. Second thing was that Kuja was being defensive. Mitheithel groaned, sat up, and shook her head slowly._

_          "How did I get here?" She asked slowly._

_          "Kuja carried you here. We had to get away from Alexandria," I explained._

_          "He's alive," She asked._

_          "Of course," Kuja said softly. I saw Mitheithel narrow her eyes a little bit, then smile. She knew something needed to be discussed._

_          "Mitheithel, I need to talk to you. Now," I requested. She nodded and followed me off into the meadow. Once we were a safe distance from Kuja, I signed._

_          "What I saw last night—" I started._

_          "Was me," Mitheithel interrupted._

_          "I already know what you are going to say. What you saw was me in Trance," She explained quietly. I nodded, and waited for her to say more._

_          "I couldn't let him die. It wouldn't be fair. Emotions welled up in me until something just clicked. I suddenly had enough power to do things I never thought I could. I stopped the fireball in mid air. It was almost like I had frozen time," She said. It made sense._

_          "That's perfectly ok, but I can sense fear about you," Mitheithel shrugged._

_          "Not fear, just doubt," She said._

_          "Another thing. What is Telemna?" Mitheithel laughed._

_          "Telemna, come here, please," She yelled. A cry of 'Yes, Mommy' came from the other side of the meadow. It wasn't long before she appeared in front of us. Telemna was a three feet high girl with her raven hair in two long pigtails that extended to her feet. She was wearing a small robe with stars and moons on it and she had blue eyes._

_          "You called, Mommy?" She asked sweetly._

_          "Sit tight, Telemna," Mitheithel muttered. She turned to me and sighed._

_          "What would you like to know?" She asked. Good question._

_          "Are you human?" That was the first question in my head._

_          "Telemna is not entirely human. She was once a black dragon with an attitude the size of the Forgotten Continent," Mitheithel answered as Telemna began playing with her hair._

_          "You tamed her?" I asked._

_          "Yes, in a way. Telemna was difficult to tame, but she was never totally mean to me during that time. Her wicked cousins, the witches of the east and the west as I like to call them, are impossible to train. She calls me her mommy all the time ever since she reformed," Mitheithel explained. A slight murmur of 'Mummy is the best' came from the grass._

_          "All that power, from a little girl! That's hard to believe!" I remarked. Mitheithel laughed._

_          "I couldn't believe it, myself," She said. When my hair began to stand on end, I knew something was wrong. Telemna stopped playing and sniffed the air._

_          "Trouble," She muttered as she sneaked off to the other side of the meadow. Suddenly, lightning flashed in front of us, revealing a figure dressed in yellow. It was a man with a staff that looked like Ramuh's._

_          "Do you think the gems Kyrenia stole were…to summon the eidolons?" Mitheithel asked._

_          "Yes," I hissed. If I wasn't mistaken, that man WAS Ramuh. And we were in for a fight._

_          "Where's Kuja?" I asked._

_          "I don't know," Mitheithel said. The man with the staff grinned and set his sights on us._

_          "Mitheithel, go find Kuja! Hurry!" She nodded and took off towards the other side of the meadow._

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I followed Telemna carefully through the tall flowers. Thunder resonated around us loudly. As it would turn out, Kuja was with Kalya and Kulusindi. Crash! A lightning bolt crashed into Telemna, sending her towards the ground and making her shake violently. After a few seconds, she lay still. I didn't have to listen to her heart to know that she was alive. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Raamalooke going head to head with Ramuh. So far, she managed to keep the eidolon on its toes. But that wouldn't last. There was a brilliant flash of light, the mighty roar of thunder, and a loud groan. And Raamalooke was on the ground._

_          The man floated across the ground and placed himself in front of Kuja. I growled and advanced toward Ramuh. Then, all of a sudden, Zidane jumped in. He unsheathed the Ultima Sword and started hacking away at Ramuh. But the eidolon simply grabbed him and shocked the desire to fight out of him. Now it was down to me, Kuja and Garnet. Ramuh hit me in the back with a lightning bolt, forcing my face into the ground. Just then, I heard the twang of an arrow. Raamalooke was alive!_

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          I loosed my arrow, perfectly content with its path. It hit Ramuh dead on, dissolving him. Zidane, Telemna and Mitheithel got up slowly and rubbed their heads. If the eidolons were looking for us, then we were in a very difficult situation._

_          "Kyrenia has the gems. I believe she is up to something," I said._

_          "That's two guardians so far," Garnet pointed out._

_          "We need information and food," Kuja said. That was right._

_          "We'll have to smuggle it," Zidane said._

_          "No, Zidane. We aren't going to steal," Garnet said firmly._

_          "Garnet Til Alexandros, do you have any money with you?" I asked._

_          "No," Garnet muttered._

_          "Think about it. If anyone sees you, then we might be discovered," Zidane pointed out._

_          "Kyrenia wants all of us dead, including Telemna," I informed._

_          "Then it's settled," Kuja muttered. He was acting less and less like himself lately. But I didn't worry about it._

_          "Telemna and Zidane will go to the village about two miles away from here and get some food," I commanded._

_          "Telemna, if Zidane gets in trouble, get him out understand?" Mitheithel ordered._

_          "Yes, Mommy," Telemna answered. We were left to patiently wait within the tall meadow._

_Mitheithel's Point of View: (8:30 P.M.)_

_          I looked at Kuja after Zidane and Telemna went away. There was something hidden in his expression. He was sitting in a clearing, staring at a beautiful flower._

_          "Kuja," I whispered softly as I approached._

_          "Back in Alexandria, I thought I would die from that fireball. The only thing that was on my mind was you. And making sure that you were alive," Kuja whispered._

_          "I couldn't let you parish, so I tranced. Kuja, I wanted to apologize," I said. He turned around and smiled lightly._

_          "No need. It was my fault for arguing with you. Can you forgive me?" Kuja said._

_          "Of course," I whispered. We were silent for a long time, and I found myself sitting next to him. His silver hair gleamed in the moonlight, and the two feathers in front of his hair waved from side to side._

_          "Will we get through this, Kuja? I don't even know what Kyrenia is capable of," I muttered._

_          "I don't know," Kuja answered. He turned his head to look at me. I felt myself drowning in his eyes, those deep pools of inner sadness. I still don't know what happened to him all these years. I mean, he told me the story, but he left some critical details out. He touched my arm lightly, leaning in to possibly kiss me. I blinked, forcing the impending vision in my head to stop and leaned in a little bit. Kuja's lips touched mine and soon it got (the kiss, that is) more and more intense. (A/N: As much as I want to, I will not do a lemon scene.) And so did my nightmare._

_          I saw Kuja floating above a platform in front of a crystal. Zidane and some other people stood on the platform exchanging words. I felt hate radiate from Kuja and I shuddered from it. I watched them fight, and eventually Kuja did something I would never allow. He turned on his brother and used a spell to destroy them, or maybe he hoped it would. As the spell took effect, the crystal and his body disappeared. I wanted to scream. I wanted to curse. And why did they do it? The vision disappeared and I found myself screaming in Kuja's arms. I managed to calm down with a few minute, but Kuja continued to panic and show concern._

_          "Mitheithel, are you alright?" He asked._

_          "I-I'm fine, honestly," I stammered. But I wasn't._

_Part 2-Midnight Stirrings_

_Uncharted Village_

_9:31 P.M. Gaian Standard_

_Telemna's Point of View:_

_          We reached the village within an hour and huddled outside of the Front Gate._

_          "Telemna, I'll need a distraction. Can you do it?" Zidane asked._

_          "Of course. I'm good at these things," I replied cheerfully. Indeed I was. And I almost started to call Zidane 'Mommy'._

_          "Alright, I'll meet you at the gate. And try not to get into trouble," Zidane replied as he slipped inside the village. I didn't need to hear that twice. I sighed and slipped into the village. It was or looked very advanced for something this size. Surely, they wouldn't miss a little bit of food. I let out a sharp wail and started to cry. (I am such a good actor) Lights went on in every house and soon people surrounded me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Zidane moving along some buildings. Everything was fine until I got an urge. It was a very familiar one, a bloodlust, if you will._

_          And all these people only fueled it. My dragon senses heightened as I picked up the scent of the humans. No! Mommy told me to behave. But I was so hungry…I'm sure Mommy wouldn't mind. Not over a few people. I bared my fangs at them and lunged at a man's leg. The man shrieked in terror as the group scattered. I quickly ripped out his throat with my claws and set about to bring down several others. I calmly dragged them into a dark ally and set about to chew on their flesh. It was sweet and satisfying._

_          All I needed was a little time alone. It wasn't long before the noise in the village died down. What I did was probably off their minds at the moment. I left the bones in the ally and went to the gate. Zidane was waiting there, in the shadows, hardly noticing the blood on my face and hands. But it would be clean before we returned to the meadow._

_          "What took you so long, Telemna?" He asked._

_          "I had something to take care of," I replied. Zidane gave me a strange look. Perhaps my tone was a bit unnerving to him._

_          "Let's go back to the meadow," He said._


	7. The Invincible & Atomos

Chapter 7-The Invincible & Atomos 

_Meadow_

_10:37 P.M. Gaian Standard_

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          Telemna and Zidane seemed to have run into trouble. Zidane wouldn't talk about it and Telemna seemed discontent in some way._

_          "All right Telemna, tell me what's wrong," I muttered. Telemna went stiff. She had to have disobeyed my orders._

_          "Sorry, Mommy, b-but I had to e-eat and…" She trailed off. I raised an eyebrow. She ate some village folk. I didn't want to scold her. Telemna was sensitive to my moods ever since I tamed her. But I knew she wasn't afraid of being fussed at._

_          "Don't worry about it," I said. Telemna relaxed._

_          "Ok, Mommy," She muttered. I turned to look at the rest of the group._

_          "Do we have anything that we can stay in for a while? Maybe an airship?" I asked._

_          "There's the Invincible," Kuja said._

_          "But it's in Lindblum," Garnet pointed out._

_          "That's about two weeks travel on foot from here, Mommy," Telemna replied She was right. But we didn't have enough food supplies to travel that long._

_          "So much for that idea," Zidane muttered._

_          "There is a way we can get there within the hour," I hissed. Telemna perked up instantly._

_          "By dragon, of course!" Kuja exclaimed. He figured out what Telemna really was. It wasn't that hard to tell._

_          "Mommy, use the reverse spell!" Telemna piped up. I sighed and waved my hand in the air. Telemna vanished in thin air, instantly. After a few seconds or so, a black dragon descended from the air and licked me on the cheek. Everyone stared at me as I issued orders to Telemna psychically._

_          "This is our group's transportation," I declared. In a sense, Telemna was huge. She was an adult dragon and she was already as long as the span of two Lindblum-like cities. She was thin, and her scales shimmered like fire when the sun hit it. Telemna carefully landed on the ground and waited for any instructions. Fearless as usual, Kuja climbed on her back without pause. Kalya and Kulusindi went after him slowly. Zidane shrugged and lifted Garnet onto the dragons back. Finally, we were ready._

_          "Telemna, you know the speed in which we can safely breathe. And no side-trips, understand?" I said. Telemna snorted in disappointment as she flapped off of the ground. Soon, we were speeding amongst the clouds on Telemna's quick, even pace._

_          "If we are being looked for, then how will we get to Eiko?" Raamalooke asked. Garnet closed her hand around her pendant._

_          "I'll use this as a sign to Eiko," She said._

_          "Who will take it?" Kuja asked._

_          "Raamalooke will," Garnet said. The assassin's eyes narrowed._

_          "No, Garnet. Pick someone else," She said quickly. Garnet pulled off the pendant and handed it to her. Raamalooke reached out to push her hand away and met with a nasty shock. She pulled her hand away and hissed._

_          "Cursed guardian Alexander, why do you haunt me so?" She whispered. And then she was back to normal._

_          "I'll go," I said. Just then, Telemna's voice filled my mind. (A/N: The 's represent Telemna's thought-speech.)_

_          'What's wrong? I felt something," She muttered._

_          "Nothing," I told her softly._

_Lindblum_

_11:27 P.M. Gaian Standard_

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          I couldn't tell Garnet why I couldn't take the pendant. Something that holy would torture my soul for ages. See, I was one of the undead. I had been roaming Gaian for years on end to get the crystal that I so deeply desire. Kuja had it, or at least I thought he did. Garnet didn't mention my reaction to the pendant. Mitheithel was worried about it, but she didn't bother me on the subject. Telemna zoomed into the airship dock building and set us down on the platform. She returned to her human form and to Mitheithel's side._

_          A group of soldiers surrounded us quickly. Garnet stepped forward and smiled._

_          "I am the Queen of Alexandria, Garnet 'til Alexandros," She said proudly. The guards sneered at her._

_          "You are not allowed here," They growled. The Invincible was in plain sight. We could get there with some considerable force._

_          "Excuse me, but you wouldn't like to contend with my swords. Let us get the Invincible," I snapped. The guards seemed to consider my threat. But it was Telemna that frightened them. She was bearing (or baring?) her teeth and growing lightly. And Telemna had very long fangs. The guards wisely backed out of our way. Mitheithel led us across the way to the airship. Telemna and I lagged behind watching for tricks. Once we got to the door, Telemna and I went inside and locked it. The Invincible was huge. Big enough for Telemna to at least nap in while she was in her dragon form. We walked through the doorway to the cockpit and saw Zidane standing on a platform into the middle of the room._

_          "Zidane, do you know how to fly this thing?" I asked._

_          "I used to," Zidane answered. Used to wasn't a valid answer. I pushed him off and inspected the nearly transparent menus in front of me. I also knew that Kuja knew how to work the airship as well. But he stood in the corner, observing me quietly._

_          "Here we go," I said as I unlocked the docking gear from the menu. With the Invincible, the way you lean your body (to the side, etc) controls the direction and speed in which it travels. I leaned my body forward, floating the Invincible out of the building. I felt something and it didn't feel good._

_          "The summoning," Kuja whispered._

_          "They say that anyone can feel the eidolon before it comes. Atomos wants us and Kyrenia sent him," Garnet whispered._

_          "What do you suppose we do?" I asked. The cockpit was silent except for the steady hum of the engines._

_          "Out run him, Mommy," Telemna answered._

_          "Telemna's right. Atomos has an attack that sucks enemies in and drops them when he feels like it," Mitheithel agreed. I looked at the menu and sighed._

_          "Kuja, show me how to power up the engines. Mitheithel, you and Telemna find whatever weapons and get ready to fire on my command. Garnet, stay here with the twins," I commanded. Kuja sighed and pushed me off of the platform gently._

_          "Watch and learn," He whispered as he opened a series of menus and entered commands into it. The commands were in a language that I couldn't identify. There was a whine coming from the back of the ship and the floor began to pulsate from under my feet. In front of us, through the screen, were darkness and the silhouette of a mouth. Kuja leaned to left, guiding the ship around and away from the mouth. He reached up and tapped a small bar on the transparent menu._

_          "Weapons are on the bottom corridor to the left of the eye," He said._

_          "I'll find them," I muttered as I turned away. It didn't take me long to get to the eye. Mitheithel and Telemna were on the left side, inspecting the weapons._

_          "What if this doesn't work?" Mitheithel asked._

_          "You'll have to go outside and throw spells," I replied. She nodded and set up the weapons. What else could happen? I returned to the cockpit slowly. Kuja was standing stationary for the moment._

_          "What's up?" I asked._

_          "I can't detect anything. The Invincible's scanners aren't picking up anything," He answered. That's not good. What was Kyrenia planning? I looked out of the screen. It was pitch black outside with the dim glow of the city lights. There was an outline of a mouth in the distance. The summoner sense grew stronger. There was a red glow coming from the outline. Kuja saw this and immediately set the Invincible in the other direction. At this point, the attack came in full swing. The airship shuddered as I scrambled downstairs._

_          "Mitheithel, set Telemna outside. We need to free the ship," I said. Telemna grinned and disappeared quickly. There was a roar outside._

_          "Time to go," Mitheithel muttered._

_Outside:_

_          We were teleported outside as Mitheithel said these words. Telemna flapped away from the Invincible and flapped powerfully against the wind. Atomos loomed in front of us, menacingly. I picked up my bow and quickly fitted my arm. I loosed it without haste. It snapped in half before it reached the mouth._

_          "That's not going to work," Mitheithel shouted above the roaring wind. Hmm…she was right. But magic won't hurt him. I picked up another arrow and pricked my finger with it. Blood ran freely down the tip and my arm. But it didn't hurt. Mitheithel looked at me with concern, and turned Telemna to the left. I fitted the arrow with my blood on it and fired it. It went right through Atomos' defenses and exploded into his mouth. The eidolon dissipated instantly, and my wound closed. Telemna flapped back to the Invincible at break-neck speed._

_A/N: While I was working on the last few chapters of this story, I came up with another idea for a fic. This time it's going to be on Freya. The title of it is going to be 'The tale of a Dragon Knight.' Sounds nice? I'm having a bit of trouble on the first chapter so when I decide to post it, will you give me some feedback? Chapters, 8 and 9 will be up soon._


	8. Possession

Chapter 8-Possession 

_8:38 A.M. Gaian Standard_

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          After Atomos was done way with, we settled in the Invincible, which was parked outside of Burmecia. It was a comfortable night, in the simple peacefulness of the Invincible. Raamalooke was up bright and early the next morning, checking the plains for danger. There were none in this fog. Kuja was keeping to himself again, not bothering to the address the twins concerns._

_          Something was eating away at him. Maybe it was the way I reacted to his kiss. But that wasn't my fault. His past was bothering me and the visions made my dreams a living hell. Something was binding me to him. After breakfast, we sat in the cockpit and debated on our next move._

_          "Where do we go next?" Raamalooke asked._

_          "Alexandria," Garnet said automatically._

_          "Absolutely not," Kuja snapped. Everyone turned to look at him. He smiled alarmingly._

_          "Kyrenia wants us dead. Therefore, if we go back to the city, she'll be waiting," He explained._

_          "He's right. But we cannot keep running from her," I added. Kuja gave me the coldest look he could muster. Telemna noticed this and bared her fangs. The look Kuja gave me chilled me to the bone._

_          "What is the matter, Kuja?" I boldly asked. My voice was thick with anger and fear._

_          "Nothing," He said simply. I guess I felt foolish. But Raamalooke made a sign with her hand. She wanted to talk later._

_          "We will talk about destinations later. Everyone is dismissed," She said. As soon as everyone left, Raamalooke joined me outside._

_          "Kuja's bothering you," She said._

_          "No, he's changing. I don't understand him," I muttered._

_          "It's probably stress," Raamalooke assured. No, it wasn't stress. No way. Just then, an icy chill went through my body, paralyzing it._

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          When I felt an icy chill, I backed away from Mitheithel. Her body shook violently, and then stood still. Garnet and Kuja dropped what they were doing and poked their head out of the door. Mitheithel's body turned away towards the Invincible as Kuja's eyes narrowed._

_          "Possession," He hissed as he stepped out onto the rainy plain. Mitheithel looked toward Kuja, but it wasn't a friendly face. I wasn't sure what to do. This was sudden and unexpected. Mitheithel leapt towards Kuja. Kuja jumped to the side, narrowly missing her claws. He was a little uncertain about handling this situation as well. He actually didn't want to hurt Mitheithel, but soon, he'd have little choice. What kind of force was at work here?_

_          "Raamalooke, Kuja, watch out! Shiva is possessing her!" Garnet shouted. I never would have guessed. Shiva/Mitheithel raised her arms and cast an ice spell at us. Kuja narrowly missed it, but I got hit with full force. I was stuck there, waiting to thaw. Mitheithel/Shiva looked at me with icy blue eyes and a cold grin. Kuja had a spell in his hand, but he was hesitating once again. Telemna stood back, not sure what to do. Her Mommy was attacking her allies. But Mommy was Mommy and she didn't want to hurt her._

_          After a few minutes, my top half thawed out and Kuja was hit with several ice spells. He fell over trembling somewhat._

_          "Kuja, get up! Hurry!" I screamed. Shiva/Mitheithel floated towards him, her body glowing with blue energy. I think Kuja would have tranced a minute ago, if it wasn't for those spells._

_          "Telemna, come here, hurry!" I shouted. Telemna was over to my body in a flash. But Kuja surprised me. He was back on his feet again and was glowing red. His hair and his feathers had a red tint in it that was becoming more and more apparent every second. Kuja's eyes turned reddish-orange as his clothes shredded, etc. As he floated into the air, his tail waved into view. I wasn't sure if Kuja had any spells to banish Shiva in Mitheithel's body._

_          I had an idea, but seeing Kuja in such a state scared me. Shiva/Mitheithel jumped up and flew towards Kuja. Kuja grabbed her and smiled as Shiva screamed and squirmed. There was a period of screaming, and then Mitheithel lay limp. Kuja hesitated for a second._

_Kuja's Point of View:_

_          In a split second, I remembered the horrors of my past. The blue light engulfed my vision and I saw Terra, the crystalline fields, and the genomes. Everything…my strife…Garland. I saw myself trying to be better than him. (A/N: The 's represent his thoughts this time around.)_

_          'That's why you turned,' A voice said in my mind. No, I did not turn. Garland made me that way._

_          'That's right just blame him. Silly boy.' Blame? Hardly. He wanted me to do everything he wanted to do himself._

_          'What about your brother, and the many lives you sacrificed to Trance, only to be shot down again.' Not a sacrifice! And I was not shot down. I still had the Life Crystal. That's why I'm alive. I didn't want to die! I am no defect!_

_          'Look at you. Now, you are clinging to life with a secret. What about your wife and Mitheithel? Don't think she doesn't know about what you did. You need to tell her.' I can't. No. Never. Mitheithel would leave me. She'd hate me. No! My vision cleared and I found myself with Mitheithel in my arms. I floated to the ground and sat her down._

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I felt and heard everything Kuja said and thought. The past kept haunting him and he was aiming for my acceptance. I knew how that felt. But I wasn't sure how to tell him, I was still conscious. Shiva hadn't gotten to do what she was really supposed to do. And that was to assassinate Kuja. But as it turns out Eidolons hate Kuja's trance energy. It's like a repellant spray to them. I sat up and shook my head softly._

_          "Kuja," I breathed. The genome was already a fair distance away, but somehow he heard me. He looked over his shoulder at me with his orange eyes. I stood up and walked towards him. Kuja stopped and waited for me._

_          "What's wrong now?" I asked._

_          "Nothing," He whispered. Liar. And my expression showed it._

_          "What do you have to hide?" I asked. I was irritated by his secret keeping. At that moment, it began to rain. I didn't care whether I was wet or not._

_          "I have nothing to hide from—" He started._

_          "Liar!" I screamed. In a split second, I had my claws up to his neck. Kuja growled at me._

_          "What would you know?" He snapped._

_          "Plenty! I have visions you know. How dare you, you treacherous dog!" I shouted. Believe me, I was a little afraid of Kuja's power, but not by much. Kuja's eyes glowed blood red._

_          "Let's not talk, Mitheithel. What about your secrets?" He said calmly. It was unnerving how calm he wasn't. The calm before the storm, I bet._

_          "My secrets are not hidden from you," I whispered. The silence lasted for a few minutes. Then, Kuja turned and walked away._

_          "He'll kill us all," I heard Raamalooke mutter. What did she mean by that?_


	9. The Reunion & Ark, Master of Shadows

Chapter 9-Reunion & Ark, master of shadows 

_Burmecia's outer gates_

_Evening, Gaian Standard_

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          My thoughts continued to drift back to Mitheithel and Kuja's argument. Mitheithel was bold for standing up and threatening Kuja with her claws. He was in Trance and Mitheithel was defenseless. But I was right about saying that he was going to help kill us. He needed to get over what was bothering him. We had parked the Invincible closer to Burmecia and went out to the city. Now we stood at a pair of giant wooden gates. It wasn't long before a Burmecian dressed in a red overcoat looked down on us._

_          "Who goes there?" She asked. Garnet sighed._

_          "I am Garnet 'til Alexandros the 17th, and we came here for lodging," She declared._

_          "Dagger?" The Burmecian asked._

_          "Is that you, Freya?" Zidane asked._

_          "Glad to see you remembered my name, Zidane. Of course, it's me," Freya said joyfully. She disappeared for a bit, as the gates opened. I walked ahead of the group with Garnet. Waiting at the end of the gates was Freya._

_          "Vivi and Eiko are here. They got ran out from Lindblum by some Kyrenia woman. Since then, we've seen more and more airships flying around. I almost thought you were Kyrenia's minions," Freya explained._

_          "Kyrenia's using the eidolons for evil. They've been attacking us ever since we left Alexandria," Garnet explained. Freya caught sight of me and scowled. I smoothed my hair out of my face and smiled._

_          "Don't you smile at me, you spineless coward," Freya hissed. Mitheithel started to say something, but I waved her off._

_          "Sticks and stones, dear Burmecian knight. I have reformed and on a good cause. I'm here to help save the world," I replied nobly. Freya gave me on awkward look._

_          "'Tis true, Freya. Raamalooke had changed," Mitheithel said softly._

_          "Follow me," Freya replied. I shrugged and ignored the looks Garnet and Zidane gave me. Yes, I knew my left eye had a mixture of blue and gray in it. I was also aware that my right eye was one solid color. That reason would be told later._

_Inside the Inn:_

_          Eiko and Vivi sat by a fire, deep in thought. (A/N: Eiko's 14 years old and Vivi's 16.) When they saw Garnet, they smiled._

_          "Dagger! Zidane! Good to see you again," Eiko grinned. Vivi took one look at Mitheithel and me and smiled faintly. You couldn't tell because he had no definite traces of a mouth, but if you looked and studied the way Vivi's eyes blazed to emotions, you'd know._

_          "Lady Mitheithel and Lady Raamalooke, good to see you also," He said. I nodded slowly. I'm glad he didn't freak out like Freya. I had never met him in person before, but Mitheithel must have told him about me. I was grateful for that. Telemna yawned and sat next to the chair Kalya and Kulusindi was sleeping in. Eiko's smiled faded._

_          "Where is Kuja?" She asked. I could tell by the way she said 'Kuja' that she didn't like him very well. Whatever respect she had for him was made only by the fact that he was Zidane's brother. I knew about this for a long time. Mitheithel looked away. Her eyes were filled with tears._

_          "Um…he was with us, but he left," Telemna said tiredly. Mitheithel left the room quickly. No one followed her. I'm sure everyone saw the last confrontation they had. That one wasn't violent, but it wasn't pretty as well. Vivi blinked and looked at Telemna._

_          "I see you are still living," He commented._

_          "I see you're still old," Telemna said. Her voice sounded different, less childlike. Vivi chuckled._

_          "You act like a child, but you're not, Telemna Naitokage," Vivi muttered. (A/N: Naitokage means Nightshadow.) Telemna grinned._

_          "Fine, ruin the surprise for everyone else," She muttered. Garnet frowned._

_          "Why look like a child then?" She asked._

_          "Because it's fun," Telemna said simply._

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          Soft rain ran down my face, stirring up memories of Kuja. I hated the feeling it gave my heart. That really low feeling that made you want to cry and pity yourself. I couldn't be like that. The city was dimly lit with streetlights. This was the city of eternal rain and things were much different here. There were shadows here and there. It didn't look natural. And then I saw a figure in the street. It was a small boy with black hair that rested on his shoulders. He appeared to be holding a wand made out of…shadows. I blinked and the boy vanished._

_          "Strange," I murmured._

_          "What's strange?" Someone asked. Raamalooke walked up beside me._

_          "I saw a boy in the street and he was holding a wand made up of shadows," I explained. Raamalooke frowned._

_          "Another Eidolon," She breathed._

_          "Which one?" I asked._

_          "Ark," She muttered. As she said that word, the shadows lengthened. Raamalooke reached in her robes and handed me two scimitar scabbards. The hilts glittered in the moonlight. I smiled and slipped them onto my belt._

_          "Come on, I don't need the others involved," Raamalooke said. We went off into the street, carefully looking around the buildings. The boy appeared in front of us and grinned. Raamalooke had her swords in hand, ready for anything._

_          "Surrender the crystal," The boy (Ark) whispered._

_          "What crystal?" I asked._

_          "Surrender the crystal," Ark repeated._

_          "No," Raamalooke hissed. Ark raised his wand and twirled it. The area around us fizzled out into blackness. I stayed close to Raamalooke as she conjured up a little flare. But there wasn't much light at all. The only thing that was illuminated was our bodies._

_          "What now?" I asked._

_          "I sense him, but I can't see him," Raamalooke complained. I blinked. Ark, the shadow master…wait…that's it!_

_          "Raamalooke, let's try holy spells," I said. Raamalooke seemed to consider this option._

_          "If we can see it, that might be an option," She whispered. How do we see a small boy in shadows? It didn't make sense. I extended my hand and fired a Holy spell into the shadows. There was an unearthly sound._

_          "I might have to reconsider our options," I said. There was the sound of an engine whirring and a stab of pain in my side. I fell over, into the layers of the shadows and hit something hard._

_          "Mitheithel!" Raamalooke screamed._

_Kuja's Point of View:_

_          I sat on a shadowy rooftop watching Mitheithel and Raamalooke. I knew where Ark was in the patch of shadows he made. And I almost didn't care. That is, until Mitheithel fell and almost hit her head. I conjured up my power and aimed it at Ark. Fiery tendrils of magic engulfed the eidolons revealing him to Raamalooke's eyes. Mitheithel was still on the ground, possibly in shock. I floated down to her and sighed. Ark immobilized her body. For what, I wasn't sure. I waved my hand over her head and waited._

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I saw him. I saw Kuja. He stood over me and he waited. He didn't seem pressed, but I was glad to see him. Finally, he walked away. I tried to reach out to him but I couldn't. The shadows disappeared instantly, and Raamalooke helped me up._

_          "Did you see him?" I asked. Raamalooke blinked._

_          "Who?" She asked._

_          "Kuja," I answered._

_          "No," Raamalooke muttered._

_          "He was just here, I swear it."_

_Author's Note: Sorry about taking so long to post this chapter. But has something to do with emotional issues and other things. But anyways, I'm back. I have a freya fic that I'd like to post soon…and other fics for the original category. =)_


	10. Vicious Battles & Secrets Revealed Part ...

Chapter 10-Vicious Battles & Secrets Revealed 

_Invincible_

_1:38 A.M. Gaian Standard_

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          When Garnet heard about Ark, she was shocked. She ordered us to go to Alexandria immediately. In a way, we needed to end this. So I powered up the Invincible and plotted a course on the navigational system. Zidane paced around the cockpit, muttering to himself every now and then. Freya, Vivi, and Eiko sat in the corner, thinking. Mitheithel was in the central area, practicing her feints and jabs. I'm sure she did it to keep her mind off of what happened last night. I didn't want to tell her that I saw Kuja._

_          Plus, he wasn't in the mood for talking. All of a sudden, the Invincible shuddered. I looked out the window and saw the reason why. We were being pounded by waves from Alexandria. Garnet, Vivi, Freya, Eiko, Mitheithel, Telemna, Kayla, and Kulusindi rushed into the cockpit. I stepped back onto the platform and quickly took control of the Airship. There was a loud whinny of a horse outside. Telemna started to growl._

_          "Take this ship lower to the city. Odin and Leviathan are about," She ordered. I did as she said quickly._

_          "Everyone follow me to the door!" Mitheithel commanded. We gathered around the door that would normally be facing a dock and opened it. We were just above a building. The street was clear and seemingly deserted. I heard another whinny and started pushing people out onto the rooftop. Once everyone was off, I jumped. At that moment, Odin's sword ripped through the Invincible, causing to explode. I was blown away from the building and into Zidane's arms._

_          "Lucky catch," I muttered. Zidane grinned widely and set me down. The gang was all here. Except for Mitheithel._

_          "Mitheithel, where is she?" I asked._

_          "Mommy landed somewhere else," Telemna asked._

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          It was very strange how I ended up here. But pondering it could wait. I needed to get back to the group. I got up and walked down the street. Once I got around the corner, I saw Beatrix._

_          "Beatrix, good to see…" I trailed off. Something was wrong. Just by the way she held the Save the Queen, I knew that something was up. I rested my hand on the hilts of my scimitars. I heard small steps on the pavement behind me. This could get ugly. And then, it started. Beatrix brought her sword up and charged at me. I whipped my scimitars out of their respective scabbards and waited. Soldiers began to attack at my left flank, in which I narrowly avoided by running. I needed space to fight. Beatrix came up to my side with surprising speed and accuracy._

_          I smacked it away with my right scimitar and kept going. Soldier after soldier surrounded me. I couldn't win by force. But surprisingly, they didn't attack. Instead, Beatrix and Steiner stepped forward, each of them baring a sword. Now was the time to stay calm. I could handle this situation. Timing and speed was all that I needed. I brought my scimitars up and began the fight._

_          Beatrix closed in on me first. She jumped into the air and brought her sword down. I could tell by the way her sword glowed, that one of her special moves was in motion. I blocked it with one scimitar, and knocked Steiner back with my leg. I backed away from Beatrix and lunged at Steiner. He reacted too late, and I ripped a hole on the side of his rusty armor. Unfortunately, Beatrix hit me in the head with the hilt of the Save the Queen. This was unreal. The eidolons had something to do with this._

_          I hit the ground and hesitated. But that period of hesitation cost me. Beatrix plunged her sword right through my back. I screamed in pain and fell on my side. From behind Beatrix, Odin smiled and so did Leviathan. I smiled faintly, pushed my available power up to the surface and let my final spell, Eternia Star, go._

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          I heard the scream and I lost my composure._

_          "She's in trouble!" I shouted. Telemna whined and covered her face._

_          "She's already dying," Telemna whispered. Dying? I rounded the corner and saw the biggest explosion that I've ever seen in my lifetime. And I saw Mitheithel closing her eyes after the smoke cleared. I couldn't get to her. The way was blocked. Emotions flooded my mind at that second. Mitheithel was like a sister to me ever since I reformed. Despite what happened between her and Kuja, she was quite a noble person. Tears ran down my cheeks as I watched the flames from the spell die out. Just like Mitheithel to go out with a spell. Suddenly, deep anger filled my soul. Kuja would not have let this happen._

_          "Curse you, Kuja! Where in Alexandria are you? Mitheithel's dead because of you! I wish you would die!" I screamed. Zidane touched my shoulder gently._

_          "Let's go get Kyrenia. We'll make her pay," He said. Kyrenia would pay all right. I'd rip her soul out from her body. I nodded and joined the rest of the group in the short walk to the castle. Once there, we stopped in front of the castle doors._

_          "This is our last challenge. We are short by two members: one dead, and one missing. Mitheithel's death will not be in vain. She had done everything possible to keep us safe. Let's restore Alexandria for her," I said. Everyone nodded. Telemna stayed close to the twins and waved her wand back and forth. Garnet stood next to Zidane, protectively. I stepped forward and unsheathed my scimitars as the doors slid open._

_Kuja's Point of View:_

_          Raamalooke's curses filled the air, chilling my soul. Did I hear right? Mitheithel was dead? No, it couldn't have happened. I flew over to where I heard Raamalooke's voice and gasped. Mitheithel was on the ground with a sword sticking through her back. There were two smoking piles of flesh nearby. Burned by a spell, I could guess. I floated down to Mitheithel's body and pulled out the sword. I could tell by the hilt that it was the Save the Queen. Beatrix was along the dead. I nearly broke down in tears when I saw her face. It was twisted in agony._

_          "I should've been here sooner. Why didn't I tell you about my past? Maybe I wouldn't have pushed you away," I whispered. I can still save her. Of course I could. I touched her forehead gently and started transferring my energy to her. All the while, I believed that she would be fine. But when Mitheithel didn't move, I lost hope. I laid my head on her stomach and began to cry. For everything. My past, my love of her and wife, and for my little family._

_          "Kuja, I can't breathe," A soft voice said. I stopped crying sat up. Mitheithel smiled faintly._

_          "You're alive," I breathed._

_          "Thanks to you," She said. I extended my arm and lifted her up carefully. Mitheithel whined somewhat._

_          "We need to find Raamalooke," I muttered. Mitheithel sighed softly._

_          "Go on without me, Kuja. I'm too weak to continue with you," She muttered. I picked her up and grinned._

_          "Nonsense. Now let's get rid of Kyrenia," I said._

_A/N: Part Two of Ch. 10 comes tomorrow._


	11. Vicious Battles & Secrets Revealed Part ...

Chapter 10, Part 2 

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          We stood in a huge room with doors to the left and back. I wasn't sure what it was and I certainly didn't want to blow our cover by speaking. Kyrenia was standing in the center of it, in front of a circle of gems._

_          "This is the end, Kyrenia," I said. Kyrenia smiled faintly, her face gently illuminated by the gems._

_          "My end isn't now. But yours is," She replied. When I showed no signs of saying anything, she continued._

_          "In a matter of minutes, Gaia's and Terra's moons will align, clothing the world in purple light. Necron shall rise up from the ashes and dominate you all!" She shouted._

_          "That's insane," Zidane muttered. No, not insane. It was a perfectly good plan, but only if I did it. Plus, Kyrenia couldn't be allowed to live after what she did to Mitheithel. I charged at her with my scimitars held high. Kyrenia stepped aside from the gems and winked. The air exploded in flames around me and I quickly tucked myself into a ball, and then flipped out of the flames. I landed on my feet, barely keeping my balance. I wanted to try some tricks of my own so I made an archaic sign with my hand and twirled around. A thin red beam smacked into Kyrenia's body and dissipated._

_          But not before tripping her up. Telemna stood forward, throwing her wand into the air. The wand got up to a certain height, and then exploded into many fireballs. When they reached Kyrenia, they exploded. But it wasn't enough. Kyrenia stood up amongst it all and pointed her finger at me._

_          "Death awaits you!" She screamed. A death spell…_

_          "I don't think so!" Someone shouted. It sounded like Mitheithel. A small beam deflected the death spell and fizzled out. Two figures dropped down from the ceiling, one leaning on the other. Kyrenia growled angrily. Telemna's eyes widened._

_          "Mommy! You're alive!" She yelled. The two figures stepped into the available light. Sure enough, Mitheithel was alive and Kuja had helped her._

_          "Kuja, I—" I started to say._

_          "Don't worry about it," Kuja muttered._

_          "I made sure Beatrix killed you! How are you still alive?!" Kyrenia hissed._

_          "Kuja saved me, and that's all you need to know," Mitheithel snapped. Kyrenia laughed and vanished. The entire room grew dark and quiet._

_          "I will always exist, insignificant morals," A deep, booming voice said. (A/N: Necron has a human form.) Then, the lights came on. A man sat in mid air, grinning slightly._

_          "And yet we meet again, Kuja. Still clinging to life with the crystal, I see," The man commented. I looked at Kuja with a frown._

_          "You have the life crystal? How long have you had it?" I asked._

_          "Why should I answer your questions?" Kuja snapped. Mitheithel growled. The man turned to face her next._

_          "And you, such a little pest. I sent Kyrenia to dispose of you, and you kept avoiding it. What about it, Mithei?" The man asked. Kuja's jaw dropped. I could read shock all over his face. If I remembered correctly, Kuja's wife's name was Mithei. That mean't…_

_          "But you were dead," I said. Mitheithel looked at me faintly._

_          "In a sense, no. But after that accident, I didn't know where I was or who I was. After a while, I just got this urge to find you, after living in the village for so long," She explained. The man stood up and glanced toward me._

_          "Raamalooke, how long have you walked amongst the living?" He asked cryptically. I knew the answer to that question._

_          "A very long time," I replied._

_          "As one of the undead," Necron (the man) added. Necron extended his hand and motioned to something unseen._

_          "Now you are mine!" He hissed as the walls blew apart and we found ourselves outside. Mitheithel looked around anxiously. I charged at Necron, knowing what he could do if he was given a chance to power up. Necron shifted his weight to his right leg and snapped his fingers. Suddenly, my muscles went limp and I slammed into the floor._

_          "Curse you, Necron," I hissed. Telemna growled and I listened to, for a lot of painstaking moments, the sounds of a frightfully long battle. But eventually, Telemna fell as I did._

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I wasn't sure what to do as I stood there, clinging onto Kuja's arm. Zidane ground his teeth as Telemna fell to Necron's spell. This was a tense moment. Then, Zidane and Freya jumped into action. Both dragon knight and genome surrounded and hacked away at Necron. But the gain was short lived. Necron grabbed them by the neck and threw them aside. Then he raised his hand and dropped it just as quickly. A crack ran through the floor and exploded in front of us. I hit the floor some inches away._

_          The thing that made the crack was a big carrion worm. Kuja was over to my side in an instant. Vivi, Eiko, and Garnet sat pinned against the wall as the worm closed in for the kill. I felt a deep stirring of power within me and closed my eyes. I focused on what was important and formed a picture of the worm in my mind. With nimble fingers, I reached inside the vision of the worm and ripped its heart out. Next thing I heard was an unearthly sound and I opened my eyes. Kuja was standing right in front of the worm with a huge bloody thing in his hands. Did I will him to do…that?_

_          Necron seemed to show no surprise towards the worm's death, nor did it look like it cared. He lifted his hands to the sky as black and gold sparks enveloped him. Necron began to spin around until he floated up above the ruined castle. The purple moon illuminated his figure and cast an eerie shadow on the land. Garnet, Eiko and Vivi dragged that who had fallen from Necron's spells out of the way. Necron extended both arms and grinned as energy flowed to them, filling Gaia with terrible silence._

_          "Total Annihilation!" He screamed. The energy came together in one second and headed down towards us._

_          "I will not allow you to steal anyone's lives!" I shouted as I went into Trance._

_Raamalooke's Point of View:_

_          Mitheithel body exploded into white light. I didn't bother to cover my eyes. The next thing I saw could only be described as unbelievable. Mitheithel was clothed in a white dress and her skin was very pale. Her hair was the color of freshly gathered snow and her eyes were a ghostly white, plus it looked like she had wings. Mitheithel took one look at the doom bearing down upon us and blinked. Instantly, the magic turned to ice and fizzled out. Necron let out an enraged scream and flew down towards Mitheithel with a death spell in hand. Suddenly, a scimitar appeared out of nowhere into Mitheithel's hands._

_          She waited until Necron drew near and plunged the sword through his chest. The demon (Necron) hesitated and faded away. Kyrenia dropped out of the sky and lay still. Then all was silent. The spell that stopped us from moving broke. I stood up carefully and stared at the horizon._

_          "Is it over?" Garnet asked._

_          "No, it is not over. As long as there is death, Necron will exist," I muttered. Mitheithel (or Mithei) smiled._

_          "That may be true, but Necron shall not bother us for the years to come," She said softly._


	12. Epliogue

_Epilogue (A few days later)_

_Lindblum Grand Castle_

_Mitheithel's Point of View:_

_          I could finally rest in peace with Kuja and the others. That night when we came back to Lindblum was the hardest. People mistrusted us and there were so much fighting. Zidane, Garnet, Eiko and Kuja worked hard as well. But the citizens finally calm when Raamalooke threatened to kill them all. I truly believe Raamalooke could take on a mob and win without sustaining injury, but we were all tired. And now that I thought about it, many people died. Beatrix and Steiner were fouond amongst the dead._

_          The Save the Queen was now in Garnet's possession and there was uncertainty about who would be the new general. Kalya and Kulusindi offered the take the job. The job was granted to them only if Raamalooke trained them every step of the way. I called them the 'Mini-assassins'. Half of the Alexandrian army was decimated, in my Eternia Star blast. But I still felt separated from the group. I walked outside into the courtyard and saw Raamalooke drilling the twins. Telemna was not far from the group, taking a nap in her dragon form. Everything was as if should be._

_          "I pray that this continent stays the same…"_


End file.
